Ensuring the safety of citizens and the territorial integrity of Poland is simply a fundamental work of the state, but it does not gotta conflict with the protection of the environment," said General Marek Wawrzyniak at a gathering devoted to the construction of the Shield East. The Ministry of Defence ensured environmentalists that the task would not, inter alia, limit animal migration.
Construction of engineering fortifications by the 16th Bomber Regiment, in Rutka, as part of the Shield East program, May 2025.
On Wednesday, representatives of the Ministry of Defence and NGOs dealing with environmental protection came to the seat of the Ministry of Climate and Environment. The gathering was about impact the Tarcza East programme to the environment. As a direct goal of the event, the government website listed: building awareness of the program, discussing how to minimize its impact on nature and responding to NGO questions.
– Our aim is to limit interference in the environment to changes absolutely essential for defence. The natural assets of east Poland are special, which obliges us to be highly careful in planning the investment – said Gen. Wawrzyniak, Head of the Board of Military Engineering and Deputy Inspector of DGRSZ military types, who coordinates works in the field.
Ministry of Defence recalled that between Tarcza East programme a so-called dam You can't put an equal sign on the border. The aim of this programme is not to make a single line of engineering structures, trenches, bunkers, reinforced concrete hedgehogs that could reduce animal migration. Where possible, existing natural field obstacles are utilized and strengthened: forests, swamps, rivers or estuaries. All to slow down or prevent larger groups of opponents from moving, not individuals or animals.
Construction of engineering fortifications by the 16th Bomber Regiment, in Rutka, as part of the Shield East program, May 2025.
Professor Michał Żmihorski from the Institute of Biology of the SS PAS reminded the position of the Polish Academy of Sciences from June 2024 on adequate environmental management in border areas. Scientists believe that specified management can besides increase national safety and defend nature. "Raising the level of groundwater, widening the floods of rivers, restoring natural wetlands, or reforesting and re-naturalizing transformed forest environments are solutions that can be an crucial barrier to military aggression. [...] In addition to expanding the safety of our country, specified solutions will besides aid to meet global obligations to defend biodiversity (e.g. excluding part of forest areas from economical use). Taking into account natural aspects will besides importantly reduce the cost of planned actions, and may even aid to rise funds for the implementation of any of them from EU funds for nature and climate protection", the Bureau of the Polish Academy of Sciences stated on the Shield of the East. At the Wednesday meeting, MON and MKiŚ expressed their willingness to usage recommendations from scientists in the process of planning investments.
The subject of the talks was besides agreement concluded in April 2025 with State Forests, which obliges programme developers to minimise the negative impact of investment on the environment and to take measures to improve its condition. Compensation measures include, among others, the afforestation and dredging of investment sites, which will benefit the environment on the 1 hand and strengthen the defence mechanisms of the full strategy on the other.
– In conclusion, MON stressed its work for the effects of the Tarcza East programme and expressed the hope of continuing constructive cooperation with social organisations in order to jointly make solutions to guarantee the safety of the state while respecting the environment as much as possible – Colonel Marek Pietrzak of the General Staff of the Polish Army reported.
Construction of engineering fortifications by the 16th Bomber Regiment, in Rutka, as part of the Shield East program, May 2025.
The east Shield is the largest operation since planet War II to strengthen the east border of Poland. – possibly present the Shield of the East is mainly associated with engineering dams set up at the border, but it is only 1 of many elements of what we are presently building. These are besides communication, recognition, mobility and investment in road infrastructure – he mentioned in April General defends Stanisław Czosnek, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Polish Army.
Construction of the east Shields was scheduled for 2024–2028 as a reaction to Russian aggression against Ukraine. In implementing this project, the military uses the experience of war in the east, but is simply a peaceful investment: to deter possible aggressors, defend soldiers and civilians, together with allies show readiness to defend borders. The fortification belt will cover the full dimension of the northern and east borders of Poland, but it is not expected to look the same everywhere. Depending on the existing natural conditions and the sculpture of the area, the Shield may include reinforcements, logistics centers, roads and bridges or another solutions.
